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Now sold pending payment and collection.

This is now sold pending payment and collection.

Price dropped to £500

You could probably pick up a big box of assorted trim and panel clips cheaply from Amazon, Ebay, etc. I have a load in the garage somewhere. They might not be the exact size or shape as the official ones, but as long as they hold securely, it doesn't really matter...not like anyone can see them.

Fair enough. When I said "only commuting" I had in mind the sort of commute I used to do which was 80 percent sitting on the motorway in flowing traffic...I occasionally used 95RON and never felt much difference.

As long as you don't have any modifications, then just put 95RON in. The car may lose a little top end power, but if you're using it to commute, you're barely going to notice. I've see people on the Facebook group claiming that the car MUST have 98RON as a minimum because "it says so on the petrol cap". Which isn't true (at least for my model year) - it says "Use 98RON fuel", but that's because it's recommended - there's no suggestion that you must ONLY use 98RON, or that anything less will cause your engine to explode. If you refer to the handbook, it does state quite explicitly that 98RON fuel is recommended for the best performance, but that 95RON fuel can be used with no detrimental effect other than slightly reduced power - but obviously, the inside of a petrol cap is a bit small to relay all that information so they just put "Use 98RON" on it. If you're looking to save some money, which is perfectly understandable especially when doing high miles, then I'd just switch to 95RON and not bother with additives personally. Obviously this may not apply to modified vehicles which have been mapped specifically for higher octanes.

Over the past couple of weeks, my car has developed a rather annoying noise from the front end. I've started this thread in the hope that I get some help tracking down what the culprit might be. The car is a 2013 model, with about 82K miles. The suspension is unmodified apart from wheel spacers fitted about 2 years ago. Symptoms When driving at low speeds, there is a creaking or popping noise emanating from the front of the car. - The noise only occurs at very low speeds, pretty much walking pace - think when making a turn in the road, manoeuvring into a parking space, or sometimes slowing to a stop. - The noise does NOT appear to be related to braking or steering inputs. It mainly seems to occur over uneven ground, ie when one wheel is moving up or down relative to the other, so when the car needs to flex somewhat. - The noise does no occur (or at least, cannot be heard) at any sort of speed. The car is otherwise sound - no clunks, rattles, grinding or feedback from the suspension apart from this noise when manoeuvring. - There are no other adverse symptoms. The car handles, stops and pulls away fine, I cannot feel any undue play in the steering or suspension. Videos I've managed to take two videos highlighting the sound. The first video is taken driving along a road local to me which has speed cushions. On the way up the road, I purposefully drive over them with just one wheel and you can hear the sound. The noise quality isn't great, it's from my phone mounted on the windscreen but listen as I slow to mount each one and you should hear what I mean. I then turn around and come back down the road, but this time I go over the speed bumps evenly. You can still hear it a little, but it's much reduced. Windows are halfway down in this one and it's a windy day, so apologies for extra noise. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=riA8ZyBeEao The second video is taken outside my house. In this one, I am literally just rolling back on the clutch, and then letting the car roll forward. You can hear the noise quite clearly. The road is generally flat, but there is a fairly large depression close to the kerb. The noise appears to be happening as the nearside wheel rolls over this and the offside wheel stays level. I'm making no steering input in this video, and only lightly touching the brakes to stop after the car has rolled forward. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UxPCrTWGfnw Things I don't think it is The following are things I've discounted for the moment, however I wont rule them out entirely if someone has better experience: - Strut braces (the stay bars running between strut towers and the firewall): I found a good thread on FT86 club where someone outlined a TSB for these making creaking noise due to debris between the mounting surfaces. However even after being removed, cleaned and reinstalled the noise is still there. Just to be sure, I also removed them entirely and drove up the same road in the video. The noise was still there; it was slightly different, maybe a little quieter, however I think that's because although they may not be the culprit, their absence might change the way the front end is flexing, thus affecting the noise. So for now, I don't think it's them. - Brakes: I've suffered creaking noises from brakes before, but this is happening with no brake application whatsoever. - Strut tops: This seems to be the most popular theory for creaking and popping noises from suspension. However, my noise appears even when there is not steering input. When stationary, if I turn the wheel, there is no noise whatsoever, so I think these are okay. - Steering rack: Don't think it's this, for the same reasons as above. - Springs/dampers: I cant get any noise out of the car stationary by bouncing it up and down, and there's no noises when driving normally, so I think these are fine. - Tie rods/end links/ball joints: Again, no noise from these otherwise, and there's no undue play on a first inspection. Prime Suspects - At the moment, my main suspect for this is the anti roll bar bushings (in the Dining Room, with the lead pipe). As evidenced above, the noise is most prevalent when the wheels are moving relative to each other, and my understanding is that this would be causing the ARB to flex/twist, whereas on level ground it shouldn't be twisting. - ARB drop links. I'm considering these as well, but only really because they link to the ARB. My experience on cars of the past is that drop links are a weak point, so usually this would be my go-to for the problem. However, again in my experience, worn drop links tends to cause all sorts of clunking noises in general driving over any sort of rough ground, whereas this issue only occurs slowly. My next step is going to be getting the car in the air at the weekend and inspecting the ARB bushing, and giving them a spray with silicone lubricant to see if that helps. In the meantime, I'd welcome any opinions on what else might be causing the noise that I could investigate. Has anyone experienced similar issues?

I spent most of last week thinking that the forums were down because the bookmark I use to access this page (https://www.gt86.org.uk/forums/forums/) was showing an HTTP Error 500. If you try and view the forums at the top level (ie click "Forums") then you get the error page. The only way to view the forums it seems is by clicking one of the sub-levels (General, Technical, The Marketplace, etc) Probably not a big deal, but is this known about/due to be fixed? Just thought I'd mention it in case no one else had spotted it.

Yup, same here. Removed all the cookies, still didn't work. Logged out, worked fine. Logged back in, fails again.

No dice I'm afraid, didn't work. Affecting Chrome on my work laptop, my home PC and my phone. However I have just tried it on MS Edge (spit) and it's working, so at least I know it's a "me" problem. I'll do a bit more digging. Thanks.

How sad is it that I know exactly what Tesco's carpark that is?

Set the alarm for half-five and went out for a drive this morning. Sacrificed a lie in. Didn't regret it.

So I ended up ordering one of these last week, just to give it a try. It's exceptionally well made, and being lighter, it did make the gear stick feel 'snappier'. However, I couldn't get on with the shape - I tend to rest my palm on the top when shifting, but because it was almost totally cylindrical and flat-topped with a very smooth finish, I felt like it didn't give me me much purchase. I think I'm happier with a ball-shaped shifter, like the OEM one, as I feel a bit more secure grasping it (snigger). I think the Duracon one would have been fine maybe with just a bit of knurling around the circumference, but after a day or so, I went back to the OEM one. No big loss - I made sure not to stick the logo on, so I was able to repackage it and send it back for a full refund. It's funny how subjective stuff like this is.

I am tempted to try it for the price. I know it sounds silly, but I am just rather partial to keeping things looking as standard as possible, so would rather have a shift gate sticker on the top rather than the aftermarket logo. However it seems like you can buy generic stickers online, and the Tomei logo is removable, so maybe I could try sourcing a more standard looking replacement.

I gave the interior of my car a good clean last weekend, including giving the seats a well overdue proper scrub with leather cleaner. While I was there, I also decided to do the handbrake handle, the steering wheel and the leather gear knob with the same cleaner. I knew that the leather on my shift knob was a bit worn, but figured a clean wouldn't hurt - but it seems like I may have scrubbed it too aggressively (stop giggling at the back) and it seems to have actually taken the leather off in parts, leaving what feels like rubber underneath, which has also broken up a bit and feels quite rough. It's not a big issue, but it's one of those things that will annoy me every time I get in the car. I was going to buy a new genuine replacement, but before I do, I figured I'd ask here, as I guess a lot of people might have switched to an aftermarket shift knob. Does anyone have an OEM black leather shift knob kicking about that they don't need and would be willing to sell? If so, please give me a shout

I am here after seeing your response to my other thread where I'm looking for an OEM replacement, and Googling "GT86 Duracon SS" out of curiosity Do they do one with the shift pattern on the top rather than the Tomei logo?

If it looked stock I might consider it, but I prefer the feel of the round OEM one. And the Duracon is also much lighter, which can make the shift feel a bit notchy in my experience.

Cheers Shad, but I think I might have sourced one with the red stitching, which is what I'm after ideally (that's what I currently have). To be honest, I thought they were all either black leather with red stitching, or red leather. Haven't seen one in plain black leather before. But thanks for the offer, I will keep it in mind!

Try lemon juice instead of vinegar. I pour some in my kettle every couple of weeks - seems just as effective at removing limescale as vinegar, but with a better smell.

If you're interested, I have an aftermarket Pioneer headunit for sale. Supports DAB and was better than the OEM unit in every way - I'm only selling it because I then switched to an Android Auto head unit. q

I think I did mine about 6 months ago in the summer and it's been fine since then, but I will keep an ear out - I imagine now it's cold and damp, it may start to reappear. Oh, one more thing BRZ - when you reattach the strut brace, be careful not to over-torque the nuts and the bolt. They have some ridiculously low torque setting, and if you overdo it and strip a stud, you're ****ed as they are welded into the panels. I just do them up as much as I can by hand then just a nip more with a socket.

Do you have a pressure washer? First thing I'd try is blasting the nozzle from the outside in case it's a piece of grit or crud or something just inside it, as that sounds like the most likely way that flow would be affected. Also, you could maybe try filling the washer bottle with hot water and flusing that through. I've sometimes found certain screenwashes can leave congealed residue in the plumbing if used in too high a concentration, which might lead to blockages, and sometimes hot water and soften and clean it. Not sure if it will help, but they're simple things to try before pulling the cowling apart.

Yup, it's the clutch fork. All you need to do is put some grease on the pivot point, just inside the bell housing. Bit fiddly, but not difficult. 1. Unbolt and remove the passenger side strut brace (just to give you better access). 2. Undo the two bolts holding the slave cylinder to the bell housing, and just move it out of the way so it's not pushing on the fork (no need to undo the hydraulic line). 3. Gently slide the rubber boot off the top of the clutch fork. You should now be able to reach a finger in behind the fork and feel for the pivot point. You'll have to work by feel, but should be able to reach it. 4. Once you know where the pivot point is, get a dollop of grease on your finger and apply it to the pivot point. I used red rubber grease as its nice and tacky. Work it in as best you can. Wiggle the fork back and forth a bit to help. 5. Once done, replace the rubber boot over the fork and reseat it properly on the bell housing. Reattach the slave cylinder, and then the strut brace and you're done. Work the clutch a few times to work the grease in and confirm the fix. I did this a few months ago and it got rid of that god awful creaking. Some say you need to repeat the process regularly, but so far the noise hasn't returned.

Yup. It also makes the gearbox feel nicer I found - feels like I am pushing the gear lever against more solid resistance, less energy from my arm being "wasted" as it were. Small but noticeable improvement

Sounds pretty good. I can hear a little touch of raspiness on the rev, is that just the video, or can you hear it in real life? Not much of a concern but it might be worse if you get catless headers I have to say, I did a double take on opening this thread and seeing the thumbnails, because you have the same colour as me, I used to have Valentis, and your registration number is only one digit different to mine. For a split second I was convinced it was my own car